Tours

MAS tours are designed to help our fellow New Yorkers and out-of-town visitors better understand our built environment, appreciate what has been saved, learn about what has been lost, and get the inside scoop on what's to come. This year, as we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the passage of the New York City Landmarks Preservation Law as a proud partner of the NYC Landmarks50 Alliance, tours listed with the Landmarks50 photo icon will specifically focus on landmarked areas, unprotected areas vulnerable to inappropriate development, historic districts, and scenic landmarks. Unless otherwise noted, most tours last approximately two hours and proceed rain or shine.

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Upcoming Tours

1 Tour Gift Certificate
By popular demand, gift certificates are now available for all the New Yorkers or visitors on your holiday shopping list! Let our award-winning guides take your friends and family on a tour that shows what makes New York, New York. $20 / $15 Members.
Give the gift of a MAS tour!

2015 08/02 - Neon Neighborhood: The West Village
7:30 PM - Today's Greenwich Village is blessed with an especially dense concentration of vintage neon signs. Signs like these advertised businesses large and small throughout the city beginning in the 1920s and 1930s but fell out of favor in the 1960s due to rising costs, restrictive zoning ordinances, and the appearance of less costly forms of outdoor advertising. In recent years, they have all but disappeared as old, independent businesses across the city have succumbed to rent hikes, dwindling sales, and old age. This new tour with Tom Rinaldi, author of "Neon New York", will take us past signs dating to the 1930s, 40s and 50s, marking the locations of some of the neighborhood's most stalwart restaurants, bars and small businesses. We will see them at dusk, as they start to come to light and when they look their best. Some have been beautifully restored; but all are in perpetual danger of disappearing. We will discuss their materials, design, origins and future. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/08 - Brooklyn's Crown Heights North East
11:00 AM - This tour explores the eastern reaches of Crown Heights, and includes blocks that have been calendared for Phase Three of the historic district with the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. Here stand exclusive residential enclaves, developed at the turn of the 20th century, beautiful houses of worship and civic buildings, beautiful brownstone blocks, and the oldest standing house in Crown Heights North. We'll also look at Brooklyn's finest collection of two family, double duplex houses called Kinkos Houses, and visit two "Superblocks," an experiment in 1960s urban renewal sponsored by Robert F. Kennedy, Jacob Javits, and designed by I.M. Pei. The tour guides are Suzanne Spellen, writer of the "Montrose Morris" columns for Brownstoner.com, and Morgan Munsey, Bedford Stuyvesant-based architect and real estate professional. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/08 - More Space and New Arrangements in Western Queens
10:00 AM - During the first third of the 20th century, Western Queens nurtured developments where traditional open space/building area relationships were altered to create new urban architecture. The Sunnyside Gardens and the Jackson Heights Historic Districts anchor this tour's route with urban geographer and Queens borough historian Jack Eichenbaum, which also includes Phipps Gardens, Matthews Flats, Metropolitan Life apartments, and early truck-oriented industrial buildings. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/08 New! -- Arts & Industry Tour of Los Sures (Southside of Williamsburg)
2:00 PM - El Puente CADRE (Community Artists' Development & Resource Exchange) presents a walking tour connecting the industrial history of South Williamsburg, which includes the Domino Sugar Factory, with a neighborhood legacy of public art, particularly community murals created by Los Muralistas de El Puente.Tour leaders and artists Joe Matunis, Miguel Hernandez and Ben McKelahan are long-standing residents and active community members of Los Sures who will share the cultural history of the Southside, emphasizing the impact and perspective of the Latino community. This tour is one in a series presented by Naturally Occurring Cultural Districts New York (NOCD-NY), a city-wide alliance of cultural networks and community leaders who have joined together to revitalize New York City from the neighborhood up. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/09 New! -- I Remember New York: Coney Island, Brooklyn
10:30 AM - Join tour guide and preservation activist Joe Svehlak who still swims here, to reminisce about Coney Island in his younger years when Steeplechase Park was still a great amusement attraction before it was demolished in the 1960s. Hear Joe describe the thrill of the Parachute Jump and the Steeplechase. In addition to Steeplechase Park, Joe remembers four rollercoasters, merry-go-rounds, and an assortment of other rides, sideshows and games of chance. Both the Cyclone rollercoaster and the Wonder Wheel are New York City landmarks and a testament to Coney Island's illustrious past and resilience. We'll also view a new amusement park, a restored carousel, and two poignant memorials by the ballpark. Stroll the boardwalk as Joe remembers family outings, amusements, bathhouses, and other facilities and attractions by the sea. On our walk we'll learn about Coney Island's honky-tonk past and issues of preservation and planning for the future. Coney Island has seen many changes in Joe's lifetime. He's happy to see it coming back with new amusements, activities and restaurants. Stay for a swim and treat yourself to a Nathan's Famous! Please note that this tour has been offered before with a slightly different theme, and there may be significant overlap in content. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/09 Not-Starving Artists: How The New York Art Scene Spawned the Co-op
4:00 PM - While socialism emerged in the 1800's European utopian dialogue, New York artists sought to make their mark on the international art scene. Our walk will illustrate how this utopianism was adapted domestically, through the genesis of cooperative living arrangements, originally by and for artists. Their goal was to enhance innovation and collaboration through proximity to an extended creative community. Join architectural designer Deborah Zelcer on a visit to the West 67th Street Arts Block; a string of well designed and appointed cooperative residences that to this day are peopled with creative individuals. Then stroll down to West 57th Street to see the institutions that were originated by these dynamic individuals - Carnegie Hall, the Art Students League, and other beautiful classic studio buildings along the way. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/11 - Drinking in Jazz Age New York
6:00 PM - The era gave birth to the Mafia, women smoking, hot uptown jazz in downtown cabarets and the loosening of the boundaries of gay and straight-laced nightlife. Imagine the streets of New York when Prohibition made getting a drink a cat and mouse game between Federal agents and young people in search of a good time. The booze was bad but the times were as gaudy as the neon signs above. New York nightlife in the 1920s featured the most outrageous dance steps, secret knocks to get in the door, goofy cocktails, and bobbed hair. A guy needed a silver flask in his suit pocket to count as debonair, and gals took to heavy drinking along with staying out late at Sin City cellars plucked from their mommas' nightmares. Join historian Kathleen Hulser for this walking tour that hits downtown hot spots including former speakeasies, dives, and raid sites. We'll explore the cobblestone streets where rum runners raced their Packards from the docks and hijackers waited in the shadows to capture a piece of the best underground business the Federal government had ever spawned. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/12 - Planning and Preservation in the East Village/LES Historic District: What's In and What's Out?, Part 1
6:00 PM - The portion of the Lower East Side known since the late 1950's as the East Village has a long history. From a trading area for native peoples to the farm of Dutch Governor Peter Stuyvesant and his descendants, the area was subdivided in the late 1700s and planned on a street grid that ran on a true north south axis (as opposed to the grid later mapped out by the city) as a development called Bowery Village. A surge in development began in the 1830s, with the construction of elegant Greek Revival row houses for the city's elite, and took off in the mid-19th Century as handsome tenements, houses of worship and other institutions were erected for German immigrants who flocked to the neighborhood and later inhabited by many other immigrant groups, including Eastern Europeans, and Latinos. The district assumed a new identity in the mid-20th century, drawing a vibrant mix of artists, musicians and community activists and has since been known as the East Village. These different layers of history all still exist in the remaining built fabric of the area. After many years of effort, preservationists were able to get part of this area designated as an historic district in 2012. This new historic district encompasses 330 buildings, primarily along Second Avenue between East 2nd and 6th Streets, and to east and west on side these side streets. Yet much of the areas to the north and East remain largely unprotected and significant losses have occurred. At this juncture, the question remains as to what additional areas should be included and what significant structures are in peril. Join guide and urban planner Laurence Frommer as we explore the East Village/Lower East Side Historic District and discover what's in and what's out. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/14 - The High Line "Ghost" Tour
6:00 PM - Join guide and architectural historian Matt Postal as he leads a tour of the freight railway's southernmost section, focusing on points of interest in the West Village and SoHo, where it originally continued and terminated. En route, we'll discuss the High Line's history and demise, viewing evidence of its impact on the immediate neighborhood, as well as unexpected bits and pieces that survive. The tour at ends at the new Whitney Museum, which is pay what you wish on Friday evenings until 10pm. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/15 - City Island
4:00 PM - Join vice president of the City Island Nautical Museum, Barbara Dolensek to visit this small island community in the western end of Long Island Sound where boatyards, seafood restaurants, and historic buildings abound. Purchased by Thomas Pell in 1654 from the Siwanoy Indians, along with much of what is now Westchester County and the Bronx, Great Mulberry or Minneford Island eventually became City Island, an oystering capital, a resort destination, and ultimately a yacht-building center. Still an active boating community and a popular restaurant attraction in fall, City Island is also a quiet residential "small town" within a big city. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/15 - Little Italy on Arthur Avenue
11:00 AM - Residents of the Italian-American neighborhoods along Arthur Avenue in the Bronx are the guardians of what some would call New York's "real Little Italy". Home to Doo-Wop music and authentic Italian restaurants and shops, many of the area's businesses has have been family owned and operated for generations. Join guide Alexandra Maruri as we explore the history of this vibrant Bronx neighborhood. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/15 New! -- Remnants of 1939/40 and 1964/65 Worlds Fairs in Flushing Meadows, Queens
5:00 PM - On this new tour with Kevin Walsh, creator of the popular blog forgotten-ny.com, we will visit the extant relics of the 1939-40 and 1964-65 Worlds Fairs in Queens, including two statues by Donald de Lue, a look at the New York City and New York State pavilions, descriptive mosaics, and the second oldest object in New York State. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/16 - Rockaway Beach in Queens: A Village Inside a Bustling Resort
5:00 PM - Join long-time Rockaway civic activist and popular Jane's Walk host Vivian Rattay Carter, author of Images of America: Rockaway Beach, for a tour of this sea-side community in Queens. During the tour, we'll hear an overview of how the Rockaway Peninsula was formed and later settled by ship captains, fishermen, hoteliers, and other plucky entrepreneurs and examine the ever-evolving culture of the neighborhood throughout the years. We'll also hear strange and fascinating tales including pre-war efforts to secede from New York City, the story behind what was once the largest hotel in the world, plans for the earliest high-rise on the beach in the 1920s, Robert Moses power-plays, tent colonies, bungalows and more. Remnants of historic hotspots will be seen along the way as we discuss the social and political forces that both improved, and in many ways, also broke apart a vibrant and self-sufficient resort community as we walk through the heart of town. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/16 New! -- From Mansion to Mansion: Hamilton Heights and Sugar Hill in Harlem
11:00 AM - The Hamilton Heights/Sugar Hill plateau overlooking upper Harlem developed around the storied 18th- and 19th-century country estates of such notable figures as Alexander Hamilton and Madame Eliza Jumel. These two historic houses still bookend the district. Starting from the Hamilton Grange, and ending at the Morris-Jumel Mansion, discover many of the stories that overflow the route in between with tour leader Eric K. Washington. Some highlights will include sites associated with Black Harlem's fashionable cafe society, the herculean Old Croton Aqueduct system, the James Bailey mansion, community gardens, the City College of New York, the Dance Theatre of Harlem, vestiges of old Carmansville, the former 32nd Precinct Mounted Police Station house, Trinity Church Cemetery and much more. Note: the tour ends at Marjorie Eliot's famous annual Jazz at the Mansion on the lawn of the historic Morris-Jumel Mansion. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/19 - Planning and Preservation in the East Village/Lower East Side: What's In and What's Out, Part 2
6:00 PM - Whereas part one of this tour series focused on the core area between Second Street and Seventh Street, part two will focus on areas to the east and north--some of which is included in the new historic district and some that were left out. The portion of the Lower East Side known since the late 1950's as the East Village has a long history. From a trading area for native peoples to the farm of Dutch Governor Peter Stuyvesant and his descendants, the area was subdivided in the late 17:00s and planned on a street grid that ran on a true north south axis (as opposed to the grid later mapped out by the city) as a development called Bowery Village. A surge in development began in the 1830s, with the construction of elegant Greek Revival row houses for the city's elite, and took off in the mid-19th Century as handsome tenements, houses of worship and other institutions were erected for German immigrants who flocked to the neighborhood and later inhabited by many other immigrant groups, including Eastern Europeans, and Latinos. The district assumed a new identity in the mid-20th century, drawing a vibrant mix of artists, musicians and community activists and has since been known as the East Village. These different layers of history all still exist in the remaining built fabric of the area. After many years of effort, preservationists were able to get part of this area designated as an historic district in 2012. This new historic district encompasses 330 buildings, primarily along Second Avenue between East 2nd and 6th Streets, and to east and west on side these side streets. Yet much of the areas to the north and East remain largely unprotected and significant losses have occurred. At this juncture, the question remains as to what additional areas should be included and what significant structures are in peril. Join guide and urban planner Laurence Frommer as we explore the East Village/Lower East Side Historic District and discover what's in and what's out. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/22 - Brooklyn's Bedford Stuyvesant
11:00 AM - Bedford Stuyvesant has a rich and storied history, from the Lenape peoples, through the Dutch, the English and beyond. Anchoring that history is some of the city's finest residential row house architecture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Explore the proposed Bedford Historic District with tour guides Suzanne Spellen, writer and architectural historian, aka columnist "Montrose Morris" on Brownstoner.com, and Morgan Munsey, architect, historian, and expert on the architecture of Bedford Stuyvesant; focusing on Hancock Street and the surrounding blocks comprising the heart of Bedford. Tour goers will see works from some of Brooklyn's finest architects; their rowhouses, apartment buildings, mansions, schools and churches. You'll also learn about the history and culture of the largest African-American community in New York City, a history that is hundreds of years in the making. Bedford Stuyvesant has received a great deal of attention in the last few years, and is undergoing many changes. Join us for a look at one of Brooklyn's most intriguing, and architecturally rich communities. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/22 - E.L Doctorow in the Bronx
4:00 PM - In his 1985 novel World's Fair about the Depression-Era Bronx, Doctorow writes, "Every neighborhood had its school like my school, its movie, its street of shops built into the sides of the apartment houses; it was tunneled with subways and bound together with trolley lines, and elevated lines." Join this tour with urban historian Jean Arrington and explore the Mt. Eden neighborhood in the Bronx where Doctorow grew up, seeing all of the above, or remnants thereof. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/22 New! -- Sunset Park, Brooklyn, Faster
10:30 AM - This series offers wider breadth, a faster pace, and is geared toward energetic walkers. Join this vigorous new tour with guide and journalist Norman Oder, through Sunset Park, Brooklyn, a complex, bustling, multi-ethnic neighborhood, known for Scandinavian roots, a diverse Latino population, and the heart of New York City's largest Chinese community. The neighborhood includes a changing industrial sector, a row-house district primed for landmarking, and a namesake park with a WPA pool and great views. Debates over environmental justice and gentrification continue. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/23 - Corona Circuit in Queens
10:00 AM - Let urban geographer and Queens borough historian Jack Eichenbaum take you through Corona, Queens. Located on the original colonial road between Flushing and Brooklyn, Corona adapted to and prospered with changing transportation technology--the LIRR, the Shell Road, trolleys and the #7 train. The tour will span Corona between the Lemon Ice King and the Louis Armstrong Museum. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/23 New! -- Brooklyn's Grand Army Plaza: The City Beautiful Landscape
2:00 PM - This new tour with architectural historian Francis Morrone will be a leisurely and detailed walk around Brooklyn's Grand Army Plaza, with special attention to the park entrance by Stanford White (your guide believes it ranks with White's finest achievements), the Soldiers' and Sailors' Memorial Arch (which Henry Hope Reed called one of the "great works of art in America"), the secluded oval containing the Bailey Fountain, many overlooked details, and in general the area that James Huneker wrote "reminds one of some vast plaza in a European capital, upper Brussels, for example." Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/23 New! -- Snug Harbor History Tour
10:30 AM - Snug Harbor has the largest collection of Greek Revival buildings in the country. Snug Harbor Cultural Center and Botanical Garden inhabits the former grounds of Sailors' Snug Harbor, the first retirement home for sailors which opened in 1833. By the turn of the 20th century, Sailors' Snug Harbor was the wealthiest charitable institution in the United States, reflected in its rich architectural heritage. It is a National Historic District with six structures included in the first group of 40 structures landmarked by NYC, as well as a rare landmarked interior. Today, Snug Harbor is one of the largest adaptive reuse projects in the United States, forming a vibrant nexus of arts and community-based organizations. Join this new tour with Snug Harbor Cultural Center docents to learn the fascinating history of the organization, it's buildings, and the area. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/29 New! -- Five Squares and a Circle
1:00 PM - Five Squares and a Circle is a unique new tour with guide Phil Desiere that takes you from the residential ambiance of Greenwich Village to the bustling commercial center of Midtown North. We follow the history of New York as the city developed its major squares: Washington, Union, Madison, Herald, and Times Squares. The tour ends with NYC's most famous roundabout, Columbus Circle. With a combination of walking and riding the subway we make our way uptown, focusing on history, art, architecture and people with personality associated with five squares and a circle. Note: This tour brings guests on the subway and you must bring a metrocard with at least two fares. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/29 New! -- Greenpoint South, Brooklyn
5:30 PM - A complement to the previously offered Greenpoint North tour, the route includes the busy retail spine of Manhattan Avenue, industrial and residential blocks, a gem of a park, and the anchor church of the neighborhood's still staunch Polish population. Led by guide and journalist Norman Oder, the tour will end near McCarren Park and signs of encroaching "Williamsburg-ization". Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/30 - Orchard Street on the Lower East Side: From Start to Finish
2:00 PM - Orchard Street is the spine of the old East Side, with not a little but a lot of everything that defines that endlessly fascinating part of Manhattan. Once, one block of Orchard ranked as possibly the most crowded in the world. On this tour with architectural historian Francis Morrone, we will talk about the different kinds of buildings people lived in during the immigrant years between the middle of the 19th century and the middle of the 20th century, about demographic changes and urban renewal and the whys and wherefores of the neighborhood's depopulation, about pushcarts and immigrant foodways, and about recent changes, including gentrification. Cost: $20 / $15 Members

2015 08/30 New! -- I Remember New York: Downtown Brooklyn
10:00 AM - In his lifetime, tour guide and preservation activist Joe Svehlak has seen major changes Downtown Brooklyn. Growing up in the 1940s and 50s, Joe remembers Brooklyn's Downtown as one of New York City's premier shopping and entertainment centers, with grand elegant department stores, specialty shops, fine restaurants and magnificent movie palaces. He would look forward to the special holiday shopping trips Downtown and the occasional treat of a movie in one of the great theaters. By the 1970s economic decline, the days of the grand department stores were over. The Fox and the Albee theatres were demolished for other commercial purposes. The Paramount became part of Long Island University and the Metropolitan is now the Brooklyn Tabernacle. Fifteen years ago Joe moved Downtown and is now witnessing dramatic high rise construction all around him. New streetscapes and plazas are adding to Downtown Brooklyn's new livability. New Hotels and shops are opening and even a new park is planned. Joe's thoughts and memories will guide us through his neighborhood as we view old civic buildings, new commercial development, designated New York City landmarks, the revitalized Fulton Mall, redesigned Flatbush Avenue, Metro Tech expansion, and even some surprising religious edifices. End by the landmarked monumental Dime Savings Bank and Junior's Restaurant, noted for its cheesecake. Please note that this tour has been offered before with a slightly different theme, and there may be significant overlap in content. Cost: $20 / $15 Members